So many of my students that I teach online with the BPSOP, and in my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshop I conduct around the planet, just grab a camera and go out with the intent of finding and shooting that “OMG” photo that we all yearn for. Well, that’s all well and good, and I say more power to you and good luck; it just might be your lucky day.

Of course, shooting early in the morning and late in the afternoon will greatly increase your chances, but without some kind of a plan, I wouldn’t bet on it. Your odds go down further if you don’t know where to go to begin looking for that elusive “keeper”.

As I tell fellow photographers and my students, light is everything so before I go off “half-cocked”, I want to know exactly where the light is going to be. I do that with the readout I get from Sunpath, a software program for determining where and when the sun will rise and set. I then use a hand bearing compass called a Morin2000 to locate the point on the horizon where the sun will come up and go down.

If I’m going to be at a location large enough of an area to offer several possibilities, I’ll plan out a shot list to determine which subject I want to take first. What I mean by that is what area will get the first light, then what area gets in next, and so on; until the light has become too hot and harsh and I stop. I’m looking for what subject I can backlight, sidelight, and put into the “Angle of Reflection, or what’s also referred to as “The Law of the Light“. This is predicated on the idea that I’ve pre-scouted the location before the day of the shoot which would be a very good habit for everyone to get into.

Along with my shot list, I begin working on my grocery list. I’ll write down what I’ll need to take that particular photo, as in props, people, additional wardrobe, etc. This is along with my regular “bag of solutions” I always try to include because you just never know and as Eddie Adams once said, “When you get lucky, be ready”.

If your interests are “just taking halfway decent pictures” (I was told this by a student right before he dropped out) then I suggest you ignore this post and continue down whatever path you’ve laid out for yourself. If you’re interested in taking your photography what I refer to as “up a notch”, then try doing it the way I’ve been doing it for over fifty years.

🙂

Visit my website at www.joebaraban.com and check out my workshop schedule at the top of this blog. Come work on your grocery list with me sometime.

JoeB

Common back in the fifties and sixties were musical groups that were successful with one hit records and not a comparable subsequent hit. It also applies to a sole artist who is remembered for only one hit despite other successes.

Once again I ask you to bear with me while I explain how this relates to you and your photography.

For those of you new to my blog, I teach an online class with the BPSOP, and I also conduct my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshops around our hopefully round planet. I see my fellow photographers walking down the streets of old medieval villages and stopping for a photo op.

They will invariably walk up to a subject or location, shoot the first idea that comes to mind, and then move on leaving a lot still ‘on the table’. By the way, the photograph is usually taken at eye level since it’s the easiest and less stressful way to compose. STOP!!! Don’t leave…don’t be a one hit wonder!!

The odds of you taking one shot and walking away with what you think in a ‘wall hanger, a keeper, or one of those elusive OMG photos are slim, and Vegas wouldn’t book it.  Even for me, and I’m a pretty good shooter.

Let me back up for a moment and explain how I would approach the same photo op. The first thing I do before raising my camera up to my eye is to determine the source of the light. In other words, what direction is it coming from. This is when “the clock” comes into play; check out this link!!

OK, so I’ve taken my first shot. Now, I look for variations and that doesn’t mean just zooming in or out while standing in the same spot!!

Here are some of the things I normally do:

• Up close and personal
• Change lens
• Up high then down low
• Different light
• Change a prop
• Put in a person, or take one out
• Look for something that might be unexpected or unpredictable.

When I’m shooting, I have one eye in the viewfinder and the other scouring the location for a way to segue my current composition into a stronger shot. As I’m shooting, I’m constantly making small to medium-sized adjustments besides the variations because like you, I’m always looking for that “OMG” shot!!!!

Visit my website at www.joebaraban.com, and check out my workshop schedule at the top of this blog. Come shoot with me sometime.

JoeB

I teach fellow photographers how to incorporate the elements of visual design and composition into their imagery.

In my part I and part II online class with the PPSOP, and in my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshops I conduct around the planet, one of the basic elements and probably the most important of them all is LINE. Without line, the other elements of visual design wouldn’t be elements, and worse, the world as we know it wouldn’t exist…why you ask????

For the simple reason that Pattern, Texture, Vanishing Points, Shape, Form, and Perspective are made up of Line. The world wouldn’t exist because everything around us from buildings to forms of locomotion to flowers to humans, etc. all have an implied outLINE.

When I’m photographing people, I almost always have my subject looking into the lens.  One of the most important implied lines is the imaginary line that runs from the subject’s eyes to the center of the lens. Not only does it suggest a certain intimacy and private bond between the subject and the photographer, but it also creates visual tension and intellectual energy.

As I always say, “Tension=Energy”.

I don’t mean the Tension that comes from mental or emotional strain, but the Tension that comes from forces acting in opposition to one another…as in the subject and the camera looking at each other.

At one time taking pictures of people use to be thought of as “robbing oneself of their soul”. Having said that, I’m not looking to steal someone’s soul (what would I do with it once I had it? Craig’s List or eBay?), however, I like the old adage that suggests the eyes are the doorway to one’s soul, and I do like the idea of looking into one’s inner spirit.

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Visit my website at www.joebaraban.com and check out my workshop schedule at the top of this blog. Come shoot with me sometimes and maybe we’ll go steal some ‘souls’ together!!!

🙂

JoeB

Here’s an interesting article I found on the ‘information highway” I thought I would share with all of you. Unfortunately, I failed to write down the name of the woman or man who wrote it, and now I can’t locate the article again. I would have loved to credit it to her/him as I find it a great read. If you are the author or know who she is, please let me know so I can credit it properly.

Here’s the article just the way I found it:

“Unless you take photographs strictly for yourself, you probably like to share your images with others. What makes that dreaded slide show your uncle pulls out every time you visit so boring is that while it has tons of associations for him and your aunt, it has none for you. After all, it was their trip to Borneo, not yours. You didn’t share the experience of buying food from a street vendor or smell the smells of the urban neighborhoods. So, pictures of them don’t mean much to you.

You should keep this exclusivity in mind when editing your own pictures. Ask yourself, “Do I like my images because they have a certain emotional appeal to me alone?” A special vacation shot or a picture of your grand kids, might be an example. Or, do your images convey a more universal meaning that will inspire emotional response in others? It helps to gather feedback from a trusted friend.

REMEMBER THAT BELOVED SUNSET OR SUNRISE YOU HAVE–SO EXCELLENTLY CAPTURED, SO EXPERTLY PRINTED AND FRAMED–MAY BE JUST ANOTHER SUNSET TO SOMEONE ELSE.

Learn how composition can affect meaning. Placement of the subject within the viewfinder can have profound effects on the meaning. Placing the subject low and surrounded by a large amount of negative space sends a different message than cropping it close. The former may send the message of hopelessness or depression, the latter a message of intimacy or friendship.

It’s a challenge to create images with meaning. It’s what separates a good photographer from a mediocre one. In judging contests and exhibits, I’ve seen many prints that are technically well done, but lack depth of meaning. These may be processed to resist aging in preparation for archival preservation, but they won’t stand the test of time on anyone’s wall–except, perhaps, the photographer’s own.

For, without an emotional connection to the image, we’ll grow weary of it. It’ll remain on exhibition for a few months and then be taken down or simply ignored as part of the background blur of our lives.

Our ability to connect with an image emotionally entices us to keep coming back to an image over and over again in order to repeat the emotion. Or, what’s even more exciting, we may find new meaning in the image as we grow emotionally and experience it in a fresh, new way.

A part of the issue surrounding meaning is the controversy over whether an image should be titled. Many contests require that the photographer name her image as part of the process of entering. And I know of several professional competitions in which the title of the print is actually part of the judging process.

I can’t tell you how strongly I object. A strong print needs no title. If I have to be told what the meaning of a print is via a title, I wonder if the photographer is certain of his message.

Titles also serve to direct and/or mislead. A title given by a photographer may direct his viewer in a particular direction, but without the limitations of a title, a viewer may discover meaning which was only subliminally apparent to the photographer. We have all taken a picture and thought it meant one thing, only to find that everyone else was seeing something else– something that emerged from our subconscious.

A title, in this instance, would have served to confuse the real meaning.

And, of course, there is the issue of language and culture itself. If a title is important, what if it’s in a language the viewer doesn’t understand? Does the image cease to have meaning? Of course, not. Art, in general, and photography specifically, are universal languages. They speak to us all–regardless of our native tongues or cultures.”

Any Thoughts?

           JoeB

The psychological use of Gesture in Photography can take our imagery what I often refer to as “Up a notch”.

A gesture is a human nonverbal movement by the hand, the face or head, or the feet to express an idea. It’s an action that conveys a person’s feelings or a deliberate act to get across a point. This point can be full of emotional implications.

Capturing this in your photography can be a powerful tool while showing a person’s personality in the process. A gesture may only comprise a very small part of your composition, but its effect can contribute more than half of the overall photograph. This is an important area we work on in my online class with the BPSOP, and in my “Stretching Your Frame of Mind” workshop I conduct around the planet.

The way a person smiles, holds their head, or hands, or even the way he or she crosses their legs can be a declaration of their persona. Having a man slump says something different than having him stand straight. Placing a person in the middle of the frame says something entirely different than placing him/her close to the edge of the frame. Gesture is a language unto itself, and can often be translated universally. Gesture is also a great way to tell a story without the words.

The most important thing to remember is that a gesture is a fleeting single motion and being able to freeze it in time is critical. If you want your photo to be authentic, it takes practice to capture the gesture at the peak of its action.

I use gesture all the time, but I don’t always wait for it. I like to create a scenario and stage the gesture then make it look like I caught it and then shot it more in a reportage reporting style. By the way, be sure to watch for my upcoming post on non-human gestures.

Here’s a few examples of actually capturing the gesture the moment it happened, and creating it to make it look real. Can you tell which is which?

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Visit my website at www.joebaraban.com, and check out my workshop schedule at the top of this blog. Come shoot with me sometime.

JoeB